


Well, That was Dumb

by fuzipenguin



Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One)
Genre: Battle Injuries, Established Relationship, M/M, Multi, Other, Polyamory, Post-Battle, Twincest, discussion of bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-26
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-11-06 00:16:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17929106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fuzipenguin/pseuds/fuzipenguin
Summary: Ratchet gets an audialfull after doing something arguably stupid in the middle of a fight.





	Well, That was Dumb

**Author's Note:**

> jenn-oddballpunk said: (1: “I have never seen a display of such idiocy in my life.”)With Sides being the one to scold Ratchet for doing something stupid for a change, Sunny too. Please and thank you.

 

                “I can’t believe you… I just… I’ve never seen such a display of stupidity in my entire life!!”

                Ratchet rolled his optics up at the ceiling and sighed, telling himself that he loved Sideswipe. He loved him dearly and Ratchet was loved dearly in return and that was the only reason he was being subjected to this lecture.

                Because of love.

                “You went toe to toe with Megatron!!” Sideswipe exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air as he paused his frenzied pacing. The glare Ratchet received was so uncharacteristically baleful that he reflexively shrunk back against the incline of his recovery berth. “ _Megatron._ What were you _thinking_?!”

                _Love_ , Ratchet reminded himself in the face of Sideswipe’s glower, and he forced his frame to relax.

                “I was thinking he was going to kill Sunstreaker,” Ratchet replied, for about the fifth time.

                “Sunstreaker can take care of himself!” Sideswipe retorted and in the bed next to Ratchet’s, Sunstreaker snorted.

                “Thanks. I think,” he interjected drolly. He shifted to better see his twin and then grimaced when the motion pulled on healing wells. Ratchet automatically leveraged himself up when he caught the expression.

                “No. No, you don’t get to be a medic now,” Sideswipe scolded, immediately coming forward and pushing Ratchet back down. “You had your chance to do something different and instead of causing any damage at all to Megatron, you ended up shot in the shoulder, abdomen, and leg. That proved you are _not_ a frontliner, and now that you’re out of surgery, you’re not a medic either… you’re a patient. So be a good one and just lie there.”

                “Sunstreaker got shot in a lot of places too! Does that mean _he’s_ not a frontliner anymore?” Ratchet protested. He wormed an arm out from under the blanket Sideswipe had just tucked around his shoulders and pointed at Sunstreaker.

                 Also? _Sideswipe_ was lecturing someone on being a good patient?

                “Yes! Because he actually incapacitated a dozen Decepticons while getting shot. And by the way? That’s his _job_ ,” Sideswipe snapped, looking like he was working himself up into even more of r a frenzy. Ratchet thought he surely would have wound down by now. Ratchet wasn’t _that_ badly hurt… Ironhide and Optimus had been two steps behind him, after all.

                “… that’s _our_ job. We get shot _at_ , and we _get_ shot so that other, more important people like Prowl or you, _don’t_. It’s the downside of the position, but we know the risks going into it. _Your_ job is to patch us up so we can go back out, kill more ‘cons, and get shot again another day.

                “But when you’re not there as a medic, that’s a problem. What if Sunny’d been hurt worse, huh?”

                He turned and stalked over to his brother’s berth and feverishly tucked the blanket in around his shoulders as well. Blinking in surprise, Sunstreaker let him without protest.

                “What if the only person who could have kept Sunny from offlining had been you and you were too hurt to help? What if you had _died?”_ Sideswipe questioned shrilly, whipping back around and staring wide-opticked at Ratchet. “What if you had died and no one was able to help Sunny and _he_ died? What if you had both died and left me and…!”

                “Sides… _hey_ …” Sunstreaker murmured, gazing worriedly at Sideswipe’s back.  

                Proving that he wasn’t severely injured either, Sunstreaker pushed himself off the berth in one fairly smooth move and rushed to embrace his twin from behind. Once their plating met, Ratchet heard a rattling sound and he realized Sideswipe was trembling quite badly.

                Head ducked and shoulders slumped, Sideswipe clung to Sunstreaker’s arms where they crossed his chest. He let out a tiny pitiful keen, and Ratchet’s spark just about shattered.

                “… Ratchet’s fine. _I’m_ fine,” Sunstreaker said quietly against Sideswipe’s audial, gently rocking him from side to side. “We’re both right here with you… you’re not alone.”

                Moving nowhere near as smoothly as Sunstreaker had, Ratchet rolled off his bed and lumbered over to the twins. He threw his arms around them both, lending support to Sideswipe from the front as best as he could on a bum leg.  

                “I never want to lose _either_ of you,” Sideswipe cried quietly, burying his face in Ratchet’s shoulder. “But I can’t lose _both_ of you.”

                “Shhh… hush, now, you won’t,” Ratchet said reassuringly. “Besides, just as you said… it’s more likely that Sunstreaker would get shot and killed than me… considering his _job_ and all. And then you’d probably go too, so who would be the one left behind, huh?”

                Sideswipe started sobbing louder, and Sunstreaker lightly smacked Ratchet upside the head. “Not helping, Ratch,” Sunstreaker muttered.

                Ratchet had regretted the words even before Sunstreaker’s rebuke. It hadn’t been what he had meant to say… but it _was_ something that picked at his processor every time the twins raced out onto the field, into the thick of a battle.

                “I… I d-don’t w-w-want you l-left behind!” Sideswipe wailed, hiccupping on every other word.

                “Well, unless you bonded me, I most likely would be,” Ratchet returned absently. He had no illusions otherwise; neither of the brothers would last long without the other.

                Sideswipe suddenly started squirming and managed to slip out of their grasp, only to turn around and gaze earnestly at Ratchet. “Then let’s do that. I want to do that. I don’t want you to be alone ever again,” he said, scrubbing at his wet optics with one hand.

                Ratchet’s mouth dropped open and he wondered if maybe Megatron had punched him harder than he had remembered. “… _what?_ Did you just ask me to bond with the two of you?”

                He shifted his incredulous stare to Sunstreaker who was not reacting the way Ratchet had thought he would. Instead, he looked thoughtful. _Far_ too thoughtful.

                “You know… that’s not a bad idea, actually,” Sunstreaker said. Sideswipe pointed at his brother and then looked back at Ratchet with an expression that clearly said ‘see? Even _Sunstreaker_ thinks it’s a good idea!’

                “Bad idea or not, the two of you need to be in your berths and visiting time is over!” Hoist announced, bustling into the room. He grabbed Ratchet by the elbow and carefully herded him back to his bed, absent-mindedly silencing the alarm for the monitoring unit Ratchet had detached from himself.

                “There is no way you are kicking me out,” Sideswipe said flatly, still wiping at his face. When Hoist glanced back over his shoulder at him, Sideswipe’s lower lip trembled a little and Ratchet honestly couldn’t tell if it was an act or not.

                Regardless, Hoist sighed and waved a hand through the air. “Fine. But grab a chair. You’re not sleeping with either one of them. And both of you… _rest._ Talk about… _oh, Primus, really?..._ bonding in the morning,” Hoist said, gesturing at Sunstreaker imperiously. Wisely, he did not attempt to physically move Sunstreaker back to his berth.

                “That’s probably best,” Ratchet said, settling his weight onto the soft surface with a sigh. He was a lot more achy then he had originally thought.

                “But what if you die in the middle of the night?!” Sideswipe exclaimed and this time Ratchet could tell it was an affectation. Although probably fueled by a true fear, based on how Sideswipe had just been acting.

                “We’re not going to die,” Sunstreaker scoffed. He squirmed around until he was comfortable, giving Sideswipe an exasperated look but allowing his twin to tuck him in again. “We’ll talk about it later.”

                “But…”

                “ _Sideswipe._ Sit,” Sunstreaker barked and pointed at the visitor chair.

                Pouting, Sideswipe did as instructed and flopped down onto the chair, crossing his arms and slumping like a sparkling.

                Ratchet thought it extremely unlikely he would stay there for long. As soon as Hoist left, he’d probably crawl up next to Sunstreaker.

                “Right,” Hoist announced, surveying them one last time. “Recharge well. And good luck with…” he gestured vaguely at the air between the three of them. “… all that.”

                He left and shut the door behind him, the light transitioning to its lowest setting. Surprisingly, Sideswipe didn’t budge, and Ratchet exchanged a glance with Sunstreaker over Sideswipe’s head.

                “… I will do my best not to attack Megatron anymore,” Ratchet finally intoned after several minutes of silence. Sideswipe snorted.

                “You have a _gun_. Why you had to swing at him, I’ll never know! Shoot him next time. If you really have to… from far away,” Sideswipe grumbled.

                Ratchet smiled fondly at the side of Sideswipe’s head. “I’ll do that,” he promised.

 

\--

 

                To both his and Sunstreaker’s surprise, five minutes later Sideswipe crawled into Ratchet’s berth. He wound himself so tightly around Ratchet that a crowbar would be needed to pry them apart.

                Ratchet found that he didn’t mind all that much. The more he thought about it, the more the idea of bonding the twins was gaining appeal.  

                So he held on to Sideswipe and gazed at Sunstreaker’s sleeping form over the top of his brother’s head until recharge gently snuck up on Ratchet and enfolded him in its healing embrace.

 

~ End


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